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Remove ring from swollen finger with Saran Wrap

Submitted by Sheila A.

I wanted to pass on how I was able to get my wedding ring off my swollen finger. I tried everything I could, including the string trick to get my rings off but to no avail. I thought of something to try with Saran Wrap.

I wrapped my finger from my ring up to the tip of my finger as tight as I could. I then greased up my ring and finger below the wrap and waited a couple of minutes.

As I pulled the Saran Wrap off at the same time I pulled my ring, it came right off. I was so thrilled and relieved, I thought I pass it on.

Sheila

Visitors comments

Best tip on the web!Comments By:
Joanna on 2006-07-16

Thank you so much for your advice. My finger was swolen and turning blue after trying on a friend's ring almost 48 hours ago and trying to get it off. I tried everything from ice to windex to string and your tip is the only one that worked! I was so worried I was going to have to get the very expensive ring cut off or, worse, that my finger would lose circulation. Thank you!!!

Bingo !!!Comments By:
TD on 2007-03-23

It works. I also tried everything to get my ring off a swollen finger but to no avail. Then I read your suggestion and lo and behold the ring was off in about 30 seconds. Thank you very much.

This really, really works!Comments By:
Trish on 2007-07-07

I had my wedding ring stuck and tried everything. Ice, dental floss, every grease available. Finger was blue and swelling. I found this and it worked so easily I could not believe it. This is something to remember and share with everyone. THANK YOU SMART LADY!!!!!!!!!

Finally, a tip that really works!Comments By:
Veronica on 2007-07-15

I had tried everything to get my wedding bands off. I was just about to go to the emergency room when I came across your tip. I did exactly what the directions called for, and the ring came right off. Thank you thank you thank you

AmazedComments By:
Caroline on 2007-08-01

I am completely amazed.....I have struggled to the point of tears to get my wedding ring off.....as due to pregnancy my fingers have swollen up and the Doctor said get it off or cut it off, alternatively loose your finger.....I'd tried everything and this worked -thank you so much, I am so releived!

It works!Comments By:
Felice on 2007-08-19

Tonight I went to a wedding, and decided to put on a ring I hadn't worn in 25 years or more. It went on (snugly), but getting the ring off was an entirely different story. I was trying hard not to give in to panic, when I came across this Saran wrap tip. It worked! What a relief to finally get that ring off without having to resort to more drastic measures!

Bravo!!!Comments By:
G'ma on 2007-09-14

After a week of waiting for the swelling to subside from an arthritic flare I was on my way out the door to have a ring cut from my finger. I had tried everything I could think of without success. Since this ring had belonged to my mother I was dreading the thought of cutting it. So getting on line was a last ditch effort to come up with a gentler solution. So I thank you for sharing your idea. I might add that there was relatively little stress on the joints with the saran-wrap method.
THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!!

HURTComments By:
ANON on 2007-10-06

i have this ring on my finger and it's stuck

Forget the rest...this is the bestComments By:
Catherine Haslam on 2007-10-08

My wedding and engagement rings were becoming tricky to get off after a holiday in the sun, this was even more a problem when returning to the UK - I seem to retain water during the night and so usually take them off. I forgot last week and so have suffered in silence until today when I decided enough as enough and searched for tips. And here I am, typing this with a slightly sore but ring free finger. What a fantastic tip, thanks so much for sharing the wisdom, I'll certainly pass this on and remember this for the future - I'm not pregnant yet, but hope to be one day and if I'm swelling up now, who knows what I'll be like then, he he.
Great to know I'm not the only one who's suffered with this, and also that there's so many handy hints out on the web (pardon the pun)!

fantasticComments By:
anon on 2007-10-28

i couldnt believe it actually worked i got my best friends engagement ring stuck on my finger and had yto get it off before her boyfriend found out this tip was fantastic came off straight away

it hurtsComments By:
shaniqua on 2007-11-10

it didn't work maybe because my ring is bent

Tried itComments By:
Kate on 2008-05-06

I was hoping that it would work for me after reading the other results. It didn't. I'm not sure what I'm going to do now. The ring that is stuck is my mother's wedding band that I had been wearing until I dumped in my kayak and didn't realize that I hit my finger until it was too late. I know that the ring can be replaced, but I hoped not to have to go the route of cutting it off.

It Works!!!Comments By:
Carole on 2008-09-07

Wow- I am so releived...I had to try this tip twice but I was able to remove both my rings..thank-you :)

it's the oil!Comments By:
olivia grasso on 2008-10-01

i don't see what role saran wrap plays in this. oil up you finger and the ring slides off after a few seconds

Duurrr! lol xxComments By:
Georgefan2006 on 2008-10-22

It isn't the oil..the wrap pulls the swell of your finger in to give enough room for the ring to slide off!

It worked!!!Comments By:
Joanna on 2008-11-28

It worked on my husband's wedding ring/finger, but it took a lot longer than 30 seconds. We had to wrap the finger about four seperate times. His finger was bad and we were about to cut the ring off, then I read this page and asked him to "humor me" and try it out.

The problem with us was that his finger was already so swollen, that we wrapped from the ring to the knuckle to let the swelling move towards the fingertips. The swelling has to go somewhere! We first tried wrapping the entire finger but it didn't go down enough, so we wrapped an inch, moved the ring, wrapped another inch, moved the ring etc... I was still having to twist and pull that ring off, even when it was almost around his fingernail - that's how swollen it got.

where can I buy Saran wrap from....I haven't heard of it before......thanks for great tip!

TipKing says: Sharan wrap is a US brand of cling film www.saranbrands.com

Thankyou so muchComments By:
Debs on 2009-02-12

Having tried everything else, I thought I'd have to have my beloved Platinum Wedding band cut off, but this worked a treat. Now need to have it significantly re-sized!

I hope it works..Comments By:
anon on 2009-03-04

just tried this trick.not working so far but my finger is very very swollen after numerous attempts at other methods..I think I will try it again tonight in hopes that the swelling will go down a bit..

WOO HOO!!!! IT WORKEDComments By:
Julie on 2009-03-05

My husband was very sceptical...but we tried this and it worked! Thanks so much for sharing!

OMG IT WORKEDComments By:
Grace on 2009-03-07

Like the woman's husband it took a lot of small sections of wrapping and some pain, but we got my 17 yr old ring off without cutting it off. She is over joyed! Thank you thank you thank you

Who ever says it doesn't work is NUTS!Comments By:
Theresa on 2009-03-29

I went out with my boyfriend last night and decided to put on a diamond and ruby ring. Usuallly I take off my rings before I go to bed but forgot because I was tired. I woke up this morning couldn't get the ring off. I tried ice for a 45 minutes and that didn't work. So when I read this I said to y boyfriend le's try it. We did and the ring came off after about 3 minutes. Great advice. Thanks.

Best advice I have ever receivedComments By:
Marissa on 2009-04-02

This was my last resort before having to get the ring cut off. I tryed soaking the ring in ice cold water, elevating the hand to reduce swellingm using, windex, soapy water... But the Seran Wrap and Cooking Oil really worked!!! It was a but painful but SOOO worth it.

SWEET !!!!!!!!Comments By:
SUE WILSON on 2009-04-05

IT TOTALLY WORKS

It's a Wrap!Comments By:
Rhonni on 2009-04-13

The Saran Wrap did the trick! It took about an hour, but I'm ring-free as I write this. We believe it worked better without the oil. This method will work, it will hurt, but just keep at it, and you too can save yourself a visit to the E.R. and repair costs to a valuable ring. Thank you to all that have contributed to this site!!

It worked - thank you!Comments By:
Rebecca on 2009-04-27

After checking that Saran wrap was, as I suspected, cling film, I tried this tip and it worked straight away (I'd failed miserably using oil, soap etc.) Thank you so much!

Superb!!Comments By:
Barbie-Doll on 2009-05-10

My wedding and engagement rings fit me yesterday - today as soon as i put them on my finger went nuts and looked like it was about to explode!

i'm pregnant and panicked that i put on so much weight overnight or pre-eclampsyia had set in that that was it! they were never coming off! they're both platinum and no way was i about to get them cut off [potential divorce from husband if that happened - far too expensive!!!]. so after a few hours of pain something had to be done - all the usual [soap, fairy liquid, shower gel, iced fingers] didn't work...until i found your solution!
the two rings came off in about 20 seconds - and the blood has started circulating again!!!!
Fantastic tip i'm not about to forget!
THANK YOU!!

WOW!Comments By:
Roz on 2009-05-22

Tried this after getting wedding ring stuck due to pregnancy.... Thought I was going to have to get it cut off after usual tricks failed and finger looked like a balloon. Didn't think this would work half way through doing it but persevered through the pain and hey presto one ring and one finger in one piece!! Best to use good quality cling film - ours kept splitting when putting it on!!

I have a question...Comments By:
catbruin on 2009-06-12

How can you grease the ring and your finger below the wrap as they are being wrapped by the saran wrap??!!
Do you apply the grease before you wrap the ring and finger??
Please help!

Bad TimingComments By:
Swollen Fingers on 2009-07-15

I just read your tip, because i was curious to see what i could have done. Unfortnately i panicked WAYY to much and ended up waking up my parents to cut off the ring. Let me tell EVERYONE something. Windex, Cocoa butter, Ice, and elecation do not work. I even tried doing all of them at the same time. I had to just cut my ring off :[ But i wish i would have read your tip sooner. It may have helped me.

My only question now is, how long will my finger remain swollen. Its been like a half hour and its still as fat as a sausage, even though the blood is flowing. Im very nervous.

Thank you the relief is amazing !! You should be give a sainthood.Comments By:
Dave on 2009-07-31

It works, I used liquid soap and then wrapped it with film, left it a couple of minutes and then twisted the ring off by rotating it....Thank you.

It worked and I am overjoyed!!!!!Comments By:
Mrs H on 2009-09-28

Due to pregnancy swelling, my wedding rings had become so tight on my finger I was starting to get hysterical about it with visions of my finger turning blue and falling off! I'd tried all the other methods and no go but thank godness I found this site coz after a bit of pain and perserverence, the rings are off!!! I am so relieved! Thank you sooo much for this wonderful tip!!!

should send you a check for the money you saved me!!Comments By:
eeggs on 2009-10-03

11 pm on a Saturday night, my teenage daughter shows me her finger with its swollen knuckle just above a tiny little ring. I spent hours trying to ice the knuckle, lubricating her finger, elevating the hand, trying to cut the ring with wire cutters. Searched the internet for solutions. Around 2 am I was contemplating a trip to Wal-Mart to buy some Windex or the emergency room, when I stumbled upon your web page. After about three wraps and unwraps and much much tears and pain, the ring was off! Thank you thank you!!!

You are wonderful!Comments By:
MLemaire on 2009-10-20

While I tried to remove the ring from my swollen finger (after 24 hours)I remembered your advice. I had to ice and then soak the finger in very cold water before I was able to adequately wrap my finger with suran wrap. But 15 minutes after that, behold the ring was removed.

Didn't work for me, my ring may have been too wide...clear packing tape and soap worked better for mComments By:
Tammy on 2009-11-06

didnt work for me, but the concept did. I tried with very sticky clear packing tape, wrapped the finger similiar to the saran wrap, added lots of liquid soap and water. It took lots of slow back and forth movement to gain area, but eventually could feel it moving slowly over the knuckle. Note this took a long time, and a lot of slow pulling and gripping the ring. THE IDEA IS TO REDIRECT/GUIDE THE SWELLING EXCESS TISSUE UPWARDS TOWARD TIP OF FINGER JUST ENOUGH TO ALLOW THE RING ENOUGH ROOM TO COME OFF. THANK GOD THIS THING CAME OFF....!!!

WONDERFULComments By:
Jennifer on 2010-01-11

Oh my gosh, I did try everything possible, I have a Doc. appointment on Wed. and I had to get my rings off and the thought of cutting them of just sickened me, so I tried saran wrap and thank heavens it worked.
Thank You so very much!
Thank You so very much

tried everything else. . . Comments By:
Nancy on 2010-01-11

I work with my hands(floral designer) and since the Christmas season my fingers have been very beat up/swollen, my ring finger was starting to tingle and I couldn't remove the wedding band using windex, soap, oil, thread or ice! With the Saran wrap the ring was off my finger in about 15 seconds. Allelujah!

It truly works!Comments By:
Eve on 2010-01-16

The trick is allowing the movement of your ring (repeated twisting around your finger) to apply the pressure needed to assist in the removal of the saran wrap. And yes it does hurt a bit...but it is worth it. I followed up with icing my finger for twenty minutes every couple of hours to help it recover. Also, this procedure needs the help of another. :)

Thank you!Comments By:
Bert on 2010-02-28

Thank you so much! My wife's wedding ring was cutting into her swollen finger which was starting to get infected. We tried washing up liquid, putting her hand in iced-water, but neither worked. We were about to ask the neighbours for some pliers when we said, "Let's just check online". I have to say we were a bit sceptical, confused by the foreign brand name (UK = cling film) but deceided to give it a go. It worked! For anyone else looking for advice, the trick seems to be getting the film as tight as possible, without it tearing, and pushing the ring as far on the finger first so there's more to wrap. Good luck! Thanks.

Thank You!Comments By:
Danny on 2010-04-06

My finger joint was getting quite red and irritated because I take my ring off a few times a day, and it just BARELY comes on/off. This is perfect.

Thank you so muchComments By:
Sandie on 2010-04-06

What a great tip, I suffer from swollen fingers a lot and have had my rings cut of once already, Its not cheap to have them repaired now, this tip is a god send, one I won't forget in a hurry, thanks for sharing it, best of luck

Brilliant - it worked!Comments By:
Val Mack on 2010-04-11

Painful but after trying & failing with everything else, it was worth it. The ring basically pushes off the cling film which in turn keeps the swelling down. I am SO RELIEVED to have both those rings off my injured & very swollend finger. THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Thank you so muchComments By:
Watto on 2010-04-12

At 38 weeks pregnant and with sudden sweling I was sure that my engagement and wedding ring would need to be cut off, having tried all the ice, elevation tactics to no avail I googled hints and tips and came across this fantastic tip. Using thin strips of cling film, my mother tightly bandaged my finger and with some baby oil as lubricant we were able to remove both rings. A pure life saver many thanks for the tip!!

I hung from my finger after ring got caught on hangerComments By:
JP on 2010-06-04

Your Saran wrap idea..I used cling wrap...worked amazingly! I have big cuts on both sides where my ring tried to rip off my finger and it swelled up a lot...I had a jeweler ready to cut off my wedding ring off my purple finger... but with the wrap I was able to do about a centimeter of section at a time to get the swelling down and push the ring up my finger. It did hurt but was so worth it. Thanks so much for the tip! My finger can heal and I don't have to pay to fix my wedding ring!!!..or pay to get it cut off! :)

Godsend!!!!Comments By:
Jmo on 2010-06-09

I was brought to tears this morning on the floor praying to god to help me(dramatic I know...) however I was so scrared that my wedding ring would have to cut off after how much my husband spent.... I read your tip and went to target for cling wrap I also for some odd reason keep vasoline in my car lol I sat in the parking lot and and in 20 seconds or less the ring was off!!! Best 3 bucks ever spent!!!! Thank you

It Works!!Comments By:
Anon on 2010-06-20

After trying everything else available on the web this was the only method that worked. We wrapped the Saran Wrap (it took two of us) put mineral oil around the ring and finger and as I held my hand up above my heart, my daughter twisted and with finally a tug we got it off.I am still swollen but I have a ring that is intact.

got abit panickyComments By:
priscilla on 2010-07-08

i know it will work...the ring i have on was quite textured....so tried...letting my finger settle and trying again...felt like i was sawing it off....then it went blue and cold...then panicked...will try again...wish me luck...

This actually workedComments By:
Beth on 2010-07-25

I thought I had waited too long to get my wedding ring off during our first pregnancy. My fingers never swell so I really didn't think I would need to take them off - wrong! The tip actually worked. I held my hand above my head for 30 minutes while holding a bottle of frozen water. Then my husband wrapped my finger and pushed the blood flow up until I could feel the swelling in my fingertip. We added petroleum jelly and just worked the ring up. It took a few minutes, but actually worked. Thanks so much!

I was skeptical and tried dishsoap and windex to no avail, then tried wrapping the saran wrap from ring to finger tip and simultaneously iceing around the finger. After 15 minutes I put dish soap on the finger and plastic wrap, used a dry paper towel for traction to pull and twist ring off. OHHH boy...such a relief. Now to get my wedding ring resized and maybe get a new setting ;)

ingeniusComments By:
Fiona on 2010-08-10

tried everything to remove engagement ring and wedding ring, spent hours. Found this tip and rings were off in a matter of minutes. Thank you for a great tip

TWIST AND PULLComments By:
David on 2010-08-30

Wrapped finger very tightly in cling film, from ring to tip of finger. (TIGHT!!!)
Apply butter to ring and keep twisting off.
The cling film will work its way under the ring and eventually come off...(KEEP TWISTING!!)
I did elevate my hand high up for about 30 minutes beforehand too which helped reduce the swelling as my finger was blue and very very swollen...

Wedding ring was stuck for over 12 hours on wrong finger (silly me!)

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THANK YOU!!!Comments By:
andrea on 2010-09-13

I'm 31 weeks pregnant and didn't take my ring off in time. When I finally decided to remove it, I couldn't get it off. I tried everything to get it off. My friends were making suggestions and nothing seemed to work. I came across this idea and it worked!! Thanks so much for sharing and for saving me the money and heartache of cutting my wedding ring!!

It really helps!Comments By:
Lindley on 2010-09-16

Put my wedding and engagement rings on the wrong hand by mistake, couldn't get them off that evening. Ice water didn't bring down the swelling. I was very panicked and looking at going to emergency in the middle of the night. Clingfilm and petroleum jelly and what felt like a lot of painful persistence (but was probably only a few minutes) and both rings are off - only took one wrapping for each ring. It feels like a miracle.

great tip!Comments By:
T Thomson on 2010-10-05

I broke my arm a couple of days ago and I'm going into surgery tomorrow. I couldn't get my ring off before the break and with the swelling I thought the ring would have to be cut off. This worked like a charm.

OuchComments By:
Finger119 on 2010-10-27

Hi I'm 13 and my qparents won't help me and my finger is stat ring ti bleed from the ring and it hurts so bad I'm crying I tried it and the Saran wrap just kept slipping please help me it hurts sooo bad!!!!:(

What an absolutely BRILLIANT idea!Comments By:
Janet on 2010-12-05

I just Googled 'swollen knuckle' because I was worried about the increasingly grotesque swelling on my ringfinger knuckle.Yes, I too had tried everything else, including lots of grease. I finally realised that my wedding ring was itself the cause of the problem when I read all the comments here. After all the worry, I've just got my husband to put clingfilm on as per the instructions. It took two attempts but I finally got the ring off. PHEW! It was really painful to get it off but, boy, does it feel better now!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Hallejuah!!Comments By:
dianeLu on 2010-12-17

You can also add me to the ranks of those thoughtless fools who accidentally put their wedding rings on the wrong hand. Duh - where was my mind??! Anyway, I struggled all afternoon to get those rings (wedding band within a ring guard)off. Tried oil, soap. Nada. Went out and specificially bought Windex - to no avail. Had a heck of a time trying to put the saran wrap on by myself - (husband has dislocated thumb so couldn't help much w/ that). Decided to try the packing tape trick - gave up on that working. Went back to the saran wrap. It kept "bunching up" around my finger. Finally hubbie told me to hold my hand above my head and he stood above and worked my ring back and forth, tugging and twisting (and it hurt like the dickens!) until finally - Voila- it slipped off! I don't know if it was the saran wrap or him standing above and pulling from that angle, but whatever it was I am forever grateful!

thank you thank you it works!Comments By:
Barbara on 2011-01-01

After nearly an hour of back & forth and icing the finger it finally came off! I had to use scotch tape, being alone I couldn"t pull the saran wrap tight enough. I am forever grateful to you.

my nieces class ring got stuck on her finger. it is a process that you must not rush. first, she put her hand above her heart for about 20-30 min. while doing this put hair conditioner on the finger and under the ring and let it soak in really good.Massage the finger, moving the blood back down toward your hand while your hand is still held upward above your heart.Then after about 10 min, use a dry towel to wipe the conditioner off. then take saran wrap and from the finger up wrap the finger very tightly and inch the ring up while twisting it. As the ring moves, remove the saran wrap and rewrap tightly around your finger. There is going to be lots of discomfort, you just have to deal with it. Hope this helps, it really worked for us!!

Great tip!Comments By:
Laura on 2011-02-16

You need an assistant. You also need to tuck the cling film beneath the ring before you wrap it tight. We used washing up liquid.

I hadn't worn my college ring for 3 years and put it on the same finger I had it sized for. I slept with it on, which was a mistake and woke up with my finger swollen to 2X its normal size. I wrapped the finger, waited about 3-4 minutes with my hand elevated, covered it with cooking oil and twisted back and forth pulling it off for about a minute. It was extremely painful, but I was relieved to see it actually coming off slowly but surely. I really didn't think it would but it did. Just keep calm and think positive. Thank You!

saran wrap absolutley works!Comments By:
anon on 2011-04-09

I tried everything to get a newly purhased ring off my middle finger. Finally, I tried the saran wrap method and the ring was off in two and a half minutes. It's so easy to do and I couldn't be more impressed.

THANK YOUComments By:
Jo on 2011-05-09

I never post comments but felt compelled to make an exception this one time. I was at wits end trying to get a ring to come off my swollen finger. NOTHING I tried worked - elevating my hand above my heart, windex, putting ice on my finger to reduce the swelling. Everything failed and was getting desperate to the point where I thought it would be a good idea to let my maintenance guy use a mini power saw to cut the ring off. Luckily, I came to my senses and told him to stop after half a second the saw made contact with my ring. The plastic wrap and oil method was my last resort and it WORKED. I was so relieved. Thank you so much for sharing this.

OMG! It worked.Comments By:
Jane on 2011-06-05

For about ten days, I had a raw skin under the ring and a swollen finger. After a second try with lots more oil, the ring started to move over the Saran Wrap (get a friend to help wrap your finger). It was difficult to get the ring over my swollen knuckle, but the secret is not to give up. Keep twisting and rocking the ring with force. I now have a bruised knuckle, along with a raw band of skin where the ring was, but I am thrilled to have it off. Took about five minutes or less--but felt like an hour because it was not fun! The finger can now heal. Thank you for this idea.

EUREKA!!Comments By:
'Anon' on 2011-07-05

Suffering from a swollen joint due to arthritus and severe swelling in my ring finger I finally came across this tip and tried it with much success. I had to wrap a couple of times and keep pouring on the cooking oil while pulling but it worked and I am so grateful for your advice.

YesYesYes!!!Comments By:
KW on 2011-07-08

Was able to get my ring off in 2 minutes. Thank you for the awesome tiP!!!

A few more ideas to add...Comments By:
Laura on 2011-08-11

One product that has helped reduce the swelling on my ring finger is Sovereign Silver First Aid Gel- it is nothing short of a miracle that can be bought in an organic food/health store or section of a store. Highly recommended for minor inflamations and redness after the ring removal.